Atelier News #5: Cultural visits, press conference, book launch, boat trip and more

Thursday, 18 October 2012, Ljubljana. The fifth day of the Atelier for Young Festival Managers was again a busy one, with a lot of different agenda points: the morning consisted of visits of cultural venues and talks with the respective artistic directors, who contributed to shaping Ljubljana’s cultural scene. The participants could choose between 15 different cultural venues. Then, a press conference took place with the launch of EFA BOOKS 5: “Inside/Insight Festivals”. In the afternoon, Darko Brlek, EFA President and Artistic and General Director of the Ljubljana Festival, shared his rich experience in the beautiful summer theatre at Krizanke. The day ended with a boat trip on the Ljubljanica river which offered another excellent networking opportunity for participants and presenters. Visiting cultural Ljubljana Cankarjev Dom and Slovenian National Opera and Ballet Theatre By Carl Adalsteinsson, Philharmonie Luxembourg In company of Mr. Bernard Faivre d'Arcier, a group of 10 participants visited the two biggest Slovenian cultural institutions: the Cultural and Congress Centre CANKARJEV DOM and the Slovenian National Opera and Ballet Theatre. The Cankar Hall is named after the writer and playwright Ivan Cankar (1876–1918), designed by the architect Edvard Ravnikar and built between 1977 and 1982. After an address of welcome by Mrs. Ingrid Gortan, Programme Manager for Classical Music, Opera and Ballet, we were given an extensive guided tour through the entire building which hosts approximately 1200 events per year. The centre has five halls named after Slovene artists: Gallus Hall which is the Grand Auditorium with a capacity of 1400 seats; Linhart Hall (600 seats); Kosovel Hall (170 halls); Štih Hall (250 seats); the black box style Pockaj Hall and various large foyers and spaces dedicated to conferences, lectures and fairs. After this half hour tour we were guided to a room on the top level with a stunning view over the city of Ljubljana, where we talked to Mrs. Gortan who gave us interesting insights into the functioning, the finances, the role, and, last but not least, the programming of this national multidisciplinary arts centre. These insights were followed by questions related to their strategies of audience and (Slovene) artists development as well of future national and international co-productions. After this session, we literally crossed only two streets and moved on to the prestigious and freshly renovated neo-classical building (end of 19th century) of the Slovenian National Opera and Ballet Theatre, one of the oldest Slovene cultural buildings. Our visit was kicked off by a meeting with the General Manager Mr. Mitja Bervar who was backed up by his colleagues Mr. Milivoj Štefan Šurbek, Artistic Director of the Opera, and Mr. Irek Mukhamedov, Artistic Director of the Ballet. During this gathering we learned a lot about: • the past: the very difficult period of the recent renovations which lasted six years in total (instead of only two) – most of the activities of the opera were touched by this situation and working conditions for the ensembles were severe (with the exception of the ballet which maintained a high level of activities); • the present: sizes and functioning of the different ensembles (ballet, choir, orchestra, singers) and the administration of the house as well as programming. Beside a large number of ballet performances and concerts given by the own orchestra, every season they premiere four operas of which one is composed by a Slovene (contemporary) composer; • the future: important budget cuts by the Slovene Ministry of Culture are forecasted for the coming year and the management still evaluates the best and most efficient way to react to this announcement. After this we engaged in a discussion about the issue of how traditional houses can/shall deal with aging artists in the ensembles. We ended our visit with a guided tour of the main hall as well as the backstage area. Ljubljana Puppet Theatre and Spanki Borci Cultural Centre By Lara Sweida-Metwally, Abu Dhabi Music and Arts Foundation We began by visiting the Ljubljana Puppet Theatre and were treated to a puppet performance “The Bremen Musicians” by four Slovenian artists. While we didn't understand all of it in detail, it was still thoroughly enjoyable and it was fantastic to watch the interaction of the young audience with the artists. We were then taken on a tour of the theatre house, a charming place decorated in vibrant colours. The theatre has six venues, with approximately 1000 seats. As the Theatre was previously an old fire station, there is also a tunnel which was formerly used as a driveway; today, it acts as an additional performance location, though can only accommodate about 50-60 people. As the tunnel is quite dark, cold and intimate, it acts as a great tool to convey the performance message; obviously dependant on what this is. We were then taken to the Spanki Borci Cultural Centre and met Iztok Kovac, founder of the EN-KNAP dance group. He took us on a brief tour of the venue, explained its history and outlined the difficulties that he currently faces. We were very fortunate to see a rehearsal of a dance show that he has choreographed. The show consists of five international dancers who perform to a 16-minute recital by Stravinsky and which will be premiering next Tuesday, 23 October. Bunker Productions, Madli Levi Fest, Exodos Festival, Galleria Alkatraz Metelkova By Veerle Claes, University of Antwerp, Belgium The first venue we visited was Bunkers Productions, a non-profit cultural organisation in the centre of Ljubljana. Curator Mojca Jug presented Bunkers' work through video material and explained enthusiastically how their venue and especially their festival (Madli Levi Fest) is organised. The second presentation was given by the director of the Exodos Festival, Natasa Zavolovsek. Next to a wide network of former Yugoslavian artists, the festival also has a constructive cooperation with international artists, such as with Belgian artist Jan Fabre. The festivals were both presented as a very modern and creative model with tons of bright ideas how to attract audiences. Instead of constantly evaluating, the directors claimed they mostly implemented these ideas without much mediation. The tour continued with a visit to the Galleria Alkatraz Metelkova, an artistic scenery in the city. The residency, where the artists create their works, presented the artistic vision and originality of the residents itself. The morning finished with a visit of the museum of contemporary art Metelkova (guided by curator Adela Zeleznik). Through this visit it became once more clear why Ljubljana is the ultimate place to hold this Atelier. The contemporary festival managers in the city are dealing with the same topics as the participants of the Atelier. It was very inspiring to exchange ideas, to hear their perspectives on certain issues, and to see that the cultural scene in the capital of Slovenia is a blooming business. Press conference and book launch Following a welcome by Darko Brlek, General Atelier Coordinator Hugo De Greef introduced the press to the mission and vision of the Atelier for Young Festival Managers. EFA Secretary General Kathrin Deventer introduced the new EFA publication “Inside/Insight Festivals. 9 Festival Directors - 9 Stories” and put these two major EFA initiatives into context: “With EFA BOOKS 5 we gathered a wealth of insights into artistic festival making in different times and places around the globe. The Atelier for Young Festival Managers in Ljubljana and the Diamond Jubilees of both EFA and the Ljubljana Festival were thus the perfect backdrop for the launch of this unique publication.” Last but not least, panellists engaged in a discussion with Nele Hertling, Vice-Chair Academy of Arts Berlin, on the importance of arts and culture in today’s Europe and around the globe. EFA BOOKS 5: “Inside/Insight Festivals. 9 Festival Directors - 9 Stories” The fifth volume in the EFA BOOKS series published by the European Festivals Association is a first: it is co-produced with CultureLink Singapore, a multi-dimensional arts management and consulting agency. In “Inside/Insight Festivals” nine renowned festival directors from all over the world share their insights into festival making in the past decades and invite for a journey of artistic and thought-provoking encounters around the globe. The book was launched simultaneously in Europe and in Asia, in the framework of the Atelier for Young Festival Managers, and at the same time in Shanghai, China, a first presentation took place in the context of the Annual General Assembly of the Association of Asian Performing Arts Festivals (AAPAF), EFA’s sister network, in collaboration with Ching-Lee Goh, Executive and Artistic Director of CultureLink Singapore. Related news and links: • Atelier News #7: "Once an Atelier, always an Atelier" • Atelier News #6: in-depth discussions of the essentials of the previous days • Atelier News #5: Cultural visits, press conference, book launch, boat trip and more • Atelier News #4: "Mutual inspiration in an ideas arena" • Atelier News #3: “Bouncing ideas and streams of creations” • Atelier News #2: Festivals in unusual contexts – a lot of food for thought • Atelier News #1: “Welcome, fools, to our world” • Daily blog by participant Gemma Connell (UK) • Robyn Archer opens Atelier LJUBLJANA 2012: “We are all participants“ • Atelier for Young Festival Managers LJUBLJANA 2011 starts today: Follow online! • Public invited to opening of Atelier LJUBLJANA 2012 with Robyn Archer • Atelier LJUBLJANA 2012: intense exclusive training and high-level public events